Electro-hydrodynamic fiber forming generally involves the introduction of a liquid into an electrical field. The resulting electrical forces create a jet of liquid which carries an electrical charge. These liquid jets may be attracted to other electrically-charged objects at a suitable electric potential. As the jet of liquid travels, it elongates and it will harden and dry. The hardening and drying of the elongated jet of liquid may be caused by cooling of the liquid (e.g., where the liquid is normally a solid at room temperature), evaporation of a solvent by dehydration, (e.g., physically induced hardening), or by a curing mechanism (e.g., chemically induced hardening). The resulting fibers are collected on a suitably-located, oppositely-charged receiver and subsequently removed from it as needed, or directly applied to an oppositely-charged, generalized target area.
Various methods of electro-hydrodynamic fiber forming are known in the art. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,043,331 and 4,878,908 describe non-woven mats comprising a plurality of fibers of organic material produced by electro-statically spinning the fibers from a liquid including the material. The electro-hydrodynamic fiber forming technique may be used to form a dressing directly on a wound surface. The techniques known in the art, however, have several shortcomings, including failing to provide a consistent quality of microfibers and a sterile dressing.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for forming a microfiber coating that provides consistent microfiber quality with safe and sterile operation.